Tiger Woods shoots a two-under 69 in his first competitive tournament since Open Championship in July. The 47-year-old birdies the last three holes at Genesis Invitational and is five shots behind the leaders after day one.
The 15-time major champion hadn’t teed it up in a tour-level event since the British Open in July as the severe leg injuries he suffered in a February 2021 car accident continued to curtail his schedule. Woods was greeted by cheers and chants of “Tiger! Tiger!” at the first tee, fans crowding for a glimpse as they would all around the classic course in Pacific Palisades west of downtown Los Angeles.
He opened with a birdie at the par-five first and after a bogey, at the fourth, he got back under par with a birdie at the eighth, where he landed his second shot from the fairway three feet from the pin. Bogeys at the 10th and 12th put him one-over, but Woods turned things around — rolling in a five-foot birdie putt at the 16th and then curling in a 23-footer at the par-five 17th, where his approach had left him off the green.
He told reporters earlier in the week that whenever he plays, he’s intending to win, and reaffirmed that self-belief after his round. Woods said;
“That’s the only reason why I tee it up. There will come a point in time when I can’t do this anymore, but right now I feel like I still can, given the right golf course.”
